Slide for power presses



Sept. 26, 1950 c. J. RHODES SLIDE FOR POWER PRESSES Filed April 1, 1948 F/GJ4.

INVEN TOR CHARLES JOSEPH RHODES ATTORNEYS Patented Sept. 26, 1950 *OFFICE 1 SLIDE FOR POWER PRESSES Charles Joseph Rhodes, Wakefield, England Application April 1, 1948, Serial No. 18,392 In Great Britain January 27, 1948 8 Claims.

This invention relates to slides for power presses. It constitutes an improvement over the construction shown in my co-pending application for Letters Patent, Serial No. 737,174, now abandoned, Where I have described a power press having a ram guided for reciprocation by longitudinal concave part-cylindrical bearing surfaces disposed at either side of the ram and co-operating with convex part-cylindrical bearing surfaces presented by slide bars rigidly secured to side members of the press, each slide bar bearing firmly along at least a substantial part of its length against the side member-to which it is secured. v

The part-cylindrical slide formed in this manner is extremely accurate and requires a minimum of setting. There is, however, a possible danger that the grooves bounding the part-cylindrical bearing surfaces might tend to open out slightly in use.

According'to the present inVention therefOre, I provide a power press having a ram guided at each side for reciprocation by a longitudinal bearing surface having both cylindrical and partcylindrical portions in sliding contact with the concentrically curved surface of a slide bar, which latter is rigidly secured to a side member of the press and bears firmly along a part of its length against the said side member.

In this ,way a tie is formed, where the cylindrical portions of the bearing surfaces surround the slide bars, which guards against the danger of openin out.

Preferably each slide bar is cylindrical and has along at least two parts of its length, flats presented to and bearing firmly against corre sponding flats on the side member to which it is secured and preferably a cylindrical portion of the bearing surface surrounds the slide bar intermediate the flats thereon, the side-member.

being recessed intermediate the said flats. The

slide bars may, however, be strictly cylindrical and in this case the flats on the side members are replaced by shallow part-cylindrical or V- shaped grooves.

The slide bars may be bolted to the side members of the press at a number of points by bolts passing through the flats presented to each other by the slide bars and the side members.

The ram may have at each side a longitudinally extending protuberance through which extends a longitudinal cylindrical bore, portions of the rear wall of the bore being cut away to'leave a partcylindrical groove in the rear face of the protuberance. The bearing surfaces may then be formed by axially-spaced cylindrical bushes within the said bores, the cylindrical bushes having portions of their rear walls cut away to conform to the cut-away bores.

The invention may advantageously be applied to a press having two side members, a work table supported by' the lower parts of the side members, a crankshaft for operating the ram journalled in the upper parts of the side members, and a cylindrical slide bar rigidly secured to the upper part of each side member below the crankshaft, each slide bar having upper and lower flats bearing firmly against corresponding forwardly facing flats on the side member to which it is secured..

Two embodiments of-the invention as applied to a C-shaped press will now be described with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which? Fig. v1 is a front elevation of the first embodiment thereof, I

Fig. 2 is a fragmentary side elevation,

Fig. 3 is a horizontal section, the left-hand side being taken on the line A- A and the righthand side being taken on the line BB of Fig. l, and

Fig. 4 is a fragmentary horizontal section taken on the line CC of Fig. 1, showing the second embodiment of this invention. Referring now to the'drawings, the press comprises two C-shaped side members I, the lower partsof which support a work'table 2, whilst a crankshaft 3 operating a ram 4 through the usual coupling 5 is journalled in the upper parts of the side'members l. The upper parts of the side members i below the crank shaft 3 have inwardly directed flanges 6 machined to form upper and lower flats l and 8 and recessed at 9 intermediate the flats. Cylindrical slide bars 10 having corresponding upper and lower flats presented to the flats 'l and 8 are held firmly to the side members l by a number of bolts i l.

The ram has at each side a longitudinally extending protuberance or gib I2 through which extends a cylindrical bore, the rear wall of which bore is cut away except for the portions l3 and 5.4. Within each cylindrical bore are upper and lower detachable cylindrical bushes I5 and IS, the rear walls of which are cut away to conform to 'the cut-away portions of the rear walls of the said bore. The bushes l5 and I6 are a sliding fit on the slide bars Hi.

It will be noted that the axes of the crankshaft 3, ram l, and slide bars It all lie in the same plane, so as to minimize any tendency of the ram 5 to rock on the slides.

As already indicated, the above-described construction may be modified by omitting to grind flats on the slide bars Ill, leaving the bars-truly cylindrical, and machining shallow part-cylindrical or V-shaped grooves, in place of the flats l and 8, in the side member I. In Fig. 4 a V-' shaped groove it is shown receiving the slidebar 2! which is perfectly cylindrical at all points. This modification, however, is more expensive and less satisfactory than the first-described con at least two spaced parts of its length, said flats corresponding to the flats of the side member, the flats of the slide bar being presented to and bearing against the respective flats of the said side member, a ram, and longitudinal bearing surfaces formed at each side of the ram, said bearing surfaces having both cylindrical and part-cylindrical portions, concentric with and sliding upon said slide bars toguide said ram for reciprocation, said cylindrical portions or the bearing surfaces of the ram surrounding the cylindrical portions of the slide bars, said parteylindrical portions of the bearing surfaces of the ram co-operating with those portionsof the slide bars which have flats formed therein.

2. In a power press, at least two side members having flats formed thereon, at least two cylindrical slide bars having flats formed thereon along at least two parts of their respective lengths, said slide bar flats being presented to and bearing against the flats on said side members, bolts pass ing through said slide bar and side member flats to rigidly secure said slide bars to said side members, a ram, and longitudinal bearings provided at both sides of said ram, said bearings having cylindrical and partly-cylindrical portions correspending to the cylindrical and flat portions of the slide bars, said cylindrical portions of the longitudinal bearings being concentric with the cylindrical portions of the slide bars and being in sliding engagement therewith, said partly cylin-' drical portions of the longitudinal bearings being concentric with those portions of the slide bars 7 on which flats are formed, and being in sliding engagement therewith.

3. In a power press, two side members having forwardly facing flats, two cylindrical slide bars having along parts of their lengths rearwardly facing flats presented to and bearing against the flats on the side members, bolts passing through said flats to rigidly secure said slide bars to said side members, a ram having two lateral protuberances bored cylindrically to slide on said slide bars, said protuberances being partly cut away at the rear in those areas which correspond to the areas of contact between the slide bars and the side members.

4. In a power press, two side members having forwardly facing flats, two cylindrical slide bars having along parts of their lengths rearwardly facing flats presented to and bearing against the flats on the side members, bolts passing through said flats to rigidly secure said slide bars to said side members, a ram having two lateral protuberances bored cylindrically to surroundv bers.

5. A power press comprising two side members, a work tablesupported by the lower part of said side members, a ram, a crankshaft for operating said ram journalled in the upper parts of said side members, a cylindrical slidebar rigidly secured to the upper part of each saidside member below said crankshaft, eachsaid slide bar having upper and lower flats bearing firmly against corresponding flats onthe side member to which it is secured, and longitudinal bearing surfaces at each sideoflsaid ram, said bearing surfaces having both cylindrical and part-cylindrical portions concentric with and sliding upon said slide bars to guide, said ram for reciprocation.

6.. In a, power press, at least two'side members, a slide bar rigidly secured to each side member, each slide bar having at least one portion engaged with and bearing at one side against said side member, at least the other side of said engaged portion being cylindrically curved, each.

slide bar having also at least one other portion disengaged from the respective side member, said disengaged portion being cylindrical, a ram, andlongitudinal bearing surfaces formed at each side of the ram, said bearing surfaces having. both cylindrical and part-cylindrical portions, concentric with and sliding upon said slide bars to guide said ram for reciprocation, said cylindrical portions of the bearing surfaces of the ram surrounding the disengaged portions of the. slide bars, said part-cylindrical portions of the bearing surfaces of the ram cooperating with the engaged portions of the slide bars.

I. In a power press, at least two side members, a slide bar associated with each side member, each slide bar having at least two spaced portions hearing at one side against the respective side member and rigidly secured thereto, at least the other'side of each said portion being cylindrical, each slide bar having also a cylindrical portion intermediate said two spaced portions, a ram, and longitudinal bearings provided at both sides of said ram, said bearings having cylindrical and part-cylindrical portions, said cylindrical portions of the longitudinal bearings being concentric with the cylindrical intermediate portions of the-slide bars and being in sliding engagement therewith, said part-cylindrical portions of thelongitudinal bearings being concentric with the said spaced portions of the slide bars, and being in sliding engagement therewith.

8. In a power press, a frame, V-shaped grooves formed therein longitudinally thereof,cylindrical slide bars engaging in and fastened in said V-sliaped grooves along a part only of their length, a ram, and longitudinal bearings on said ram, said bearings having both cylindrical and part-cylindrical portions, concentric with and sliding upon said slide bars to guide said ram for reciprocation, said part-cylindrical portions of the bearings of the ram cooperating with those parts of the slide bars which engage in and are fastened in said V-shaped grooves, said cylindrical portions of the bearings of the ram being in sliding engagement with the other parts of said slide bars.

CHARLES JOSEPH RHODES.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 1,154,155 Yeomans l Sept. 21, 1915 1,673,163 Schmelzkopf June 12, 1928 2,083,682 Balsiger June 15, 1937 2,139,234 Johnson Dec. 1, 1938 2,293,134 Hallenbeck Aug. 18, 19612 

